In is known in the automotive vehicle industry to provide cargo storage or restraint compartments by attaching sections of netting to surfaces within the passenger and/or cargo areas of a vehicle. The netting is known to be formed from elastic cords, non-elastic cords, or a combination thereof to provide a compartment that is somewhat expandable if desired. For example, it is common to attach a non-elastic netting section to the side walls of a vehicle's trunk or rear cargo area so that the net stretches across the area a short distance forward of the rear bumper. Objects such as grocery bags can then be placed behind the net and are prevented from sliding or rolling forward when the vehicle is in motion. In another example, it is known for a netting section containing some elastic cords to be anchored flat against a vertical surface to form a pocket for holding smaller items, the pocket being somewhat expandable to hold the items snugly against the surface.
In the past, the netting has been held in the desired position by anchors having a ring or aperture through which the cord forming the netting passes. Most often, the anchors have included male fastener having a sheet metal or machine thread for engagement with a hole formed in the metal body structure at the desired point of attachment. If the metal body structure is covered by carpeting or a plastic panel at the point where the anchor is to be mounted, a hole must also be formed in the carpet or panel to allow the male fastener to pass through.
It may be desired to mount a storage net on a carpeted surface within the vehicle, such as inside the trunk or cargo area, or on a lower inside surface of a door. In such a case, it would greatly simplify the manufacturing and assembly of the vehicle if the netting could be anchored directly to the carpet, rather than to the underlying metal structure. In the past, it has been necessary to attach anchors to the carpet prior to the carpet being permanently installed in the vehicle, since the known types of anchors have required that a worker have access to the back surface of the carpet in order to fix the anchor in place. Typically, such an anchor has been inserted through a hole in the carpet and the end of the anchor on the back side of the carpet has been heat staked, or a nut or similar female fastener has been affixed to the end of the anchor projecting through the hole.
It would be simpler, faster, and less expensive to install a net cargo restraint if the anchors holding the net cords in place could be secured to the carpet without requiring access to the back surface. This would allow the anchor to be secured in position after the carpet has been permanently installed in the vehicle. This would be advantageous both when the anchors are installed as original equipment at the time the vehicle is manufactured, and also would greatly simplify the installation of a net cargo restraint as an after-market feature.
Another disadvantage to prior art anchors of the type used for net cargo restraints is that they typically are not able to freely swivel once they are secured to a base layer. As the cord passing through the aperture of an anchor is tugged and moved during normal use, the net cord may tend to become wrapped around or bind in a non-swivelling anchor, and so may be subjected to additional stress which, over time, could damage the cord.
It would be advantageous to provide an anchor that can be simply and quickly attached to a thin base layer, such as carpet or a plastic panel, and which may freely swivel during use.